Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance, also known as Guaranteed Issue, is a form of permanent life insurance in which your application is always accepted.
While the word, "guarantee" has a nice ring to it, it's important to understand what is behind that promise.
Guaranteed acceptance life insurance can make all the sense in the world for some specific situations. Before making a purchase, there are five essential facts you need to know about guaranteed acceptance life insurance.
First and foremost, it's important to know that guaranteed acceptance life insurance is always accepted. In other words, you are guaranteed coverage regardless of your health. Guaranteed acceptance life is also extremely simple to purchase. Actually, this type of policy has about the simplest steps to purchase coverage.
Guaranteed acceptance life insurance can be costly.
Life insurance carriers absorb risk in exchange for life insurance protection. The amount you pay for your guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy is expensive because all applicants are accepted – even those with high risk (poor health).
Note: The above rates for illustration purposes only. Individual rates may vary by company, product, and resident state.
Keep in mind – You will want to keep an eye on your return on investment. It is possible to pay more in premiums, over the life of the policy, than the death benefit is worth.
Guaranteed acceptance life insurance does have age restrictions differing by issuing insurance company.
For the most coverage options, you will need to be between the ages of 50 – 80 years old.
However, there are policies available for applicants starting as young as age 40, up to age 85.
So, what if I am younger than age 40 or older than age 85? If you fall outside the age limits for guaranteed acceptance, you will want to collaborate with an independent life insurance agent to discuss your specific coverage needs and policy options.
For example, if you are younger than 40, and do not qualify for a different form of life insurance, an accidental death policy may be an option.
If you are older than 85, there are limited life insurance options, up to about age 89. You will need to be in at least decent health to qualify.
Most guaranteed acceptance policies have graded death benefits.
What is a graded death benefit?
A graded death benefit means that your beneficiary does not qualify for entire death benefit initially upon you passing. Typically, with this type of policy your full death benefit will not be paid out until year three.
Note – while not as common, some carriers return premium payments, plus interest, during the first two years of a policy with a graded benefit, should death occur.
It's important to consider other life insurance options and understand how life insurance works before deciding to purchase guaranteed acceptance life insurance.
​If you can be approved, there are other more affordable life insurance options available, likely with a larger face amount and more affordable premiums.
Term Life Insurance – Cost-effective and available in large face amounts, term life insurance is often your first stop when considering a life insurance purchase. Term life insurance is life insurance issued for a specific term (10, 20, 30 years). Keep in mind, a term life insurance policy means that it will expire at the end of its term. Term life policy face amounts usually range from $25,000 to over well over $1 million.
Whole Life Insurance – As the name implies, whole (permanent) life insurance lasts your whole life and includes a cash-value component. While guaranteed acceptance is a form of whole life insurance, there are other traditional types of whole life – with stricter underwriting. Traditional whole life insurance, in comparison, will be less expensive and have larger face amounts available. Policy sizes range from $10,000 to over $1 million for traditional whole life insurance.
Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance – Guaranteed Universal Life (GUL) is a popular life insurance option for seniors. Think of guaranteed universal life as a bridge between term and whole life insurance. While technically a term life insurance product, the GUL policy is designed to last your entire life.
For example, GUL policies often remain in force until age 90, or even over age 100. Premiums tend to be more expensive than term life insurance, but less expensive than whole life insurance.
For some, guaranteed acceptance life insurance can feel like a breath of fresh air. If you have struggled to find life insurance coverage that you qualify for, guaranteed acceptance might make all the difference for your family.
It is recommended that you explore alternative life insurance options before deciding on guaranteed acceptance life insurance.
There are a number of top-rated life insurance carriers that offer guaranteed acceptance life insurance. In our experience the following companies are recommended based on company ratings, products offered, customer service, and other factors.
Who Should Buy Guaranteed Acceptance Life?
Who Should Not Buy Guaranteed Acceptance Life?
You will want to do a few things before making a guaranteed acceptance life insurance purchase.
1. Work with an independent life insurance agent so that you can access multiple carriers and multiple policy options.
2. Determine if guaranteed acceptance life insurance is the best type of coverage to fit your needs.
3. Be prepared for the application by having your basic information readily available, including your social security number and beneficiary information.